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| Staff Writer |
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A group of horses owned or trained by Saudi will be participating in The Dubai World Cup at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday 30th March, among them are Asfan Al Khalediah, who has won 17 consecutive races, and Saudi Crown, who placed third in the Saudi Cup this year.
Asfan Al Khalediah won the Gr.1 Diriyah Gate Development Authority Obaiyah Arabian Classic on dirt on Saudi Cup night last month, and is now set to compete in the Gr.1 Dubai Kahayla Classic over the same 2000m trip at Meydan. His stablemate, Tilal Al Khalediah, who has won nine out of his 11 career starts, will also be joining him in the contest after winning the 2100m Ministry Of Culture Al Mneefah Cup on the turf at The Saudi Cup meeting.
This will be the first time the two have clashed on the racecourse. Mutlaq bin Mishriff, stable representative at Al Khalediah Stables, said, “Both are illustrious champions, with golden records. Undoubtedly, the aspiration is to secure victories under the banner of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, championed by His Highness Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz and Al Khalediah.
“We meticulously analyse the race calendar to tailor strategic plans for our horses in top events. We thrive on the thrill of competition and challenges.”
Trainer Lucas Gaitan and the Athbah Racing operation are set to field two horses in the upcoming Dubai World Cup at Meydan Racecourse. Among them is Dergham Athbah, a Purebred Arabian trained by Saudi, who will compete in the Gr.1 Dubai Kahayla Classic. Additionally, Walk of Stars, another horse owned by Athbah Racing, will be participating in the Godolphin Mile.
Speaking about the decision to go to Dubai with Dergham Athbah, Gaitan said, “After the Obaiyah he was training great, that's why we decided to go to Dubai. We are very happy with him, so let’s hope everything continues like that.
“We think he can run a very nice race in Dubai – last year he was fourth when coming from behind. Of course we will do everything to win, but this year is probably tougher and to be in the top five would be great.”
At the US$12 million Dubai World Cup, Saudi Arabia will be participating with Defunded, trained by Abdulaziz K Mishref. The horse will be facing off against The Saudi Cup winner, Senor Buscador, along with Japanese contenders Ushba Tesoro and Derma Sotogake, who placed second and fifth respectively in the US$20 million Riyadh event. Mishref, the youngest trainer to have a runner in both The Saudi Cup and Dubai World Cup, is optimistic about the performance of his 6YO horse at Meydan and anticipates an improved run.
“We believe he will come on for the run in The Saudi Cup as he was fresh then,” said Mishref. “The horse is showing signs of progress and is responding well to the training routines that have been planned for him.”
Defunded appeared to get worked up before running in The Saudi Cup, but Mishref doesn’t expect that to be such a problem this time around, “We are endeavouring to make him calm. The horse has become very calm in training as well as in the stable. His nervousness was notable during the preliminaries of The Saudi Cup, and I hope he will overcome that in the Dubai World Cup.”
One of the top contenders for victory in Dubai among Saudi-owned horses is Saudi Crown, who put up a valiant performance in finishing third behind Senor Buscador and Ushba Tesoro in The Saudi Cup in his last outing. Trained by Brad Cox in the USA and donning the well-known silver silks of Faisal Al Qahtani's FMQ Stables, Saudi Crown is the favored horse for the Gr.2 Godolphin Mile.
Another horse that will be joining him in the competition is Scotland Yard, who has won multiple major races in Saudi Arabia, including the internationally Listed Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup. Scotland Yard was last seen finishing eighth in The Saudi Cup.